Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1887-10-19
What W. W. Corcoran Says of Gen. R. E.

In response to an invitation to attend the
ceremonies incident to the laying of the
cornerstone of the monument to Gen. R.
E. Lee in Richmond on the 9th inst, the
distinguished philanthropist, Mr.. w. W.
Corcoran, of Washington city, who knew
Gen. Lee we'll, pays his character tribute
which is as just and deserved as. it is beau
tifully expressed.
| His letter is as follows:-
WASHINGTON, Oct. 10, 1887.
C. A. Bohannon, Esq, Secretary, &c.:
| Dear Sir,-I have the honor to acknowl-
edge the receipt of the obliging note BY
which the Confederate veterans of r. E.
Lee Camp, No 1, invite me to participate
in the ceremonies incident to the laying OF
the cornerstone of monument to Genera
Robert E. Lee, at Richmond, Va, Thurs
day the 9th instant.
| have withheld my reply for many days
in the hope that by my presence / might
give myself the happiness of bearing wit
ness to the deep interest l take in your
enterprise, and to the profound reverence /
cherish for the great man and illustrious
soldier whose virtues and whose exploits
you seek to commemorate l regret to
say, however, that the state of my health,
though improved, is still so unsteady as to
admonish me, at my advanced age, against
the propriety of undertaking a journey
which involves some fatigue, and which
would be sure to put some strain on my
strength by the very pleasures promised to
me in such a hospitable city as Richmond
l must, therefore, most reluctantly re-
nounce the cherished hope Of being with
| u, infa R,f
though not with you in person, l shall be
with you in spirit and in fullest sympathy
with the admiring homage which you bring
to the name and memory of your great
countryman.
| 1t was my good fortune to have been
honored with the intimate acquaintance and
! close friendship of General Lee during the
whole period of his public career, and
whether recall him as he moved in the
social sphere, which he adorned by his
virtues and graces, or as he lowered above
his contemporaries on that higher stage
where the lustre of his great qualities shone
| in the eyes of the whole civilized world,
can truly say, with no small experience of
my fellow.men, that of all the men l ever
knew he always seemed to me the most re-
markable for the grandeur as well as for
the symmetry of the elements which COM
posed the strength and beauty of his peer
| less character. For such was the natural
constitution and such the harmonious blend
I ing of these elements that, in the gentle
ness and benignity of his demeanor, he
was seen to be as great in his goodness as
he was good in all his greatness.
| Like all truly great and good men, Gen.
eral Lee had in the highest degree that
simplicity of character which springs from
purity of heart as we'll as from the perfect
transparency of clear intelligence.
Endowed with an understanding which
was as calm as it was penetrating and pro-
found, he always possessed his soul in a
patience which never murmured, and
serenity which was never ruff1ed, whatever
might be the duties he was summoned to
perform or whatever might be the perils he
was called to face.
No duty ever found him unprepared. No
trial ever shook his steadfast mind. In
trepid in all assaults of fortune and the very
soul of honor, he was the Chevalier Bayard
of his day-a knight without fear and
without reproach, because in him all that
was soldierly in conduct met and mingled
with all that was blameless in life. With
an integrity which rooted itself in the very
fibre of his moral constitution, and which,
therefore, never gathered spot or stain
throughout the WnOle OF MS long anu event.
full career, he yet had not the slightest trace
of vanity or consciousness in his nature,
but walked before men with the modesty
and humility born of deep religious spirit.
1t is only those who knew him well in all
the serene depths of his mental and moral
being who can account for the heroism he
displayed on the field of battle, and the
greater heroism which be displayed after he
had sheathed his sword and bowed, with
out repining, to the decree of an overruling
Providence.
Although the life and example OF such a
man may justly seem to belong, in some
special sense, to the State and section
which stood in the clearest sight of all his
greatness and all his goodness, yet the
whole country may rightly claim it's share
in the heritage of that renown which all
generous minds are quick to accord to ex-
allied virtues wherever found, and to mag
nanimity of soul wherever it is inspired by
a supreme and conscientious sense of right. |
Renewing to you my thanks for your
courtesy, am, my dear sir, yours most
sincerely,
w. W. CoRCoRAN.